Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) in the Asia-Pacific Region: Enhancing Cooperation and Best Practices

Introduction

The United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) requires countries to provide Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) to each other, with certain exceptions. In this seminar report, we will explore MLA requests, challenges, and best practices in the Asia-Pacific region.

Country Presentations

• Hong Kong: Introduced the ICAC’s role in facilitating MLA and provided examples of successful MLA cases.
• Cambodia: Enacted new laws to strengthen its legal framework for MLA.
• Indonesia: Engaged in capacity-building activities to enhance international cooperation and provided examples of successful MLA cases.
• Lao PDR: Emphasized the importance of enhancing cross-border cooperation with neighboring countries and introduced its National Anti-Corruption Strategy.
• Japan: Highlighted the challenges of communication in MLA requests.

Key Issues on Practical and Effective MLA

• Importance of Communication
• Using communications in English to overcome language issues
• Drafting original text of requests in one’s native language and keeping sentences short and vocabulary simple
• Knowing the system of the requested State to overcome potential differences

Seminar Recommendations

1. Enhancing Information Sharing: Facilitating information sharing among agencies and practitioners through capacity-building activities, staff exchanges, etc.
2. Building Trust: Building trust among agencies and practitioners through direct communication and cooperation
3. Improving Communication: Improving communication among MLA practitioners to overcome language issues and potential differences in systems

Conclusion

The seminar aimed to promote best practices in MLA, enhance international cooperation, and build trust among agencies and practitioners in the Asia-Pacific region.